Canada PNP results summary for November 2021

Here's a recap of last month's Provincial Nominee Program updates from throughout the nation. During the month of November, over 3,000 invitations to apply for a provincial nomination were issued by Canada's Provincial Nominee Programs (PNP). With the exception of Nunavut and Quebec, which have their own immigration systems, nearly every Canadian province and territory has its own Provincial Nominee Program (PNP).

Provincial governments can choose immigration candidates who satisfy their local labour market demands and manage the regional settling of the immigrant population within their authority by having their own immigration programs. Each province has its own standards for determining whether foreign employees are eligible for Canadian permanent residency under its own PNP.

The PNP supplements federal immigration processes and allows Canadian provinces to have an important role in immigrant selection. Since its inception in 1998, the PNP has grown to become the second most popular path to permanent residence in Canada. PNPs alone are estimated to result in more than 80,000 immigrants being accepted as permanent residents each year between now and 2023.

Each province that runs the PNP has at least one stream that is linked to the federal Express Entry system, which is Canada's primary economic immigration route. So far this year IRCC has held PNP–specific Express Entry lotteries every two weeks on average. For example, IRCC held two Express Entry drawings in November, targeting PNP applicants, granting 775 ITAs on November 10 and another 613 on November 24.

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Since mid-September, IRCC has only held draws in the PNP category. So far this year, there have been 23 PNP-specific lotteries, with 13,000 hopefuls receiving invites. However, the Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP) did not issue any invites through its PNP streams for the month of November. This means that the province's nomination allocation cap for 2021 may have been met.

The following is a summary of November draws by province:

British Columbia (BC)

British Columbia held six draws in the last month and invited 861 people to apply for a provincial nomination through the Express Entry British Columbia and Skills Immigration streams, roughly matching the number of invitations provided every month since the beginning of the year.

Manitoba

This month, the government of Manitoba held two draws across the three streams: Skilled Workers in Manitoba, International Education Stream, and Skilled Workers Overseas. The drawings took place on November 1 and November 18, and a total of 849 Letters of Advice to Apply were given, with 143 of them going to candidates who claimed a valid Express Entry profile.

Prince Edward Island

On November 18, Prince Edward Island held a huge pre-scheduled draw and awarded 188 invitations to immigration aspirants. The majority of the invites, 172, were sent to Express Entry and Labour Impact applicants. The remaining 16 invites were given to Business Impact applicants who had minimum point criteria of 67. PEI has done 11 draws so far this year, increasing the total number of invites given to 1,729.

Saskatchewan

The Saskatchewan Immigrant Nominee Program (SINP) hosted the largest invitation round of the year in November, issuing 633 invitations to apply for a provincial nomination under the Express Entry and Occupations In-Demand sub-categories of the International Skilled Worker Category. After a one-month hiatus, this round of invites was the first-time invitations that were distributed in both categories.

The SINP also stated that in December 2021, it would begin a new pilot initiative to assist firms in recruiting overseas talent for certain in-demand jobs. Healthcare, agriculture, agricultural technology, manufacturing, construction, hospitality, and retail are among the industries with the highest labour demand. To be eligible for the new Hard-To-Fill Skills Pilot project, applicants must have a permanent, full-time employment offer, a minimum level of competence in an official Canadian language, and a minimum level of education and work experience.

Nova Scotia

Nova Scotia added three additional qualifying jobs to the Occupations In-Demand stream on November 18, including food counter attendants (NOC 6711), food & beverage servers (NOC 6513), and light-duty cleaners (NOC 6731).

Alberta

The Alberta Immigrant Nominee Program (AINP) Express's Entry Stream has hosted one invitation round so far in November. On November 9, the AINP held a draw and invited 200 candidates with CRS scores of at least 343.  

Newfoundland and Labrador

The results of the first three drawings performed under the Priority Skills Newfoundland and Labrador stream were revealed in November by Newfoundland and Labrador. As a result, the Newfoundland and Labrador Provincial Nominee Program (NLPNP) has invited a total of 663 persons to submit for a provincial nomination so far this year.

PNPs allow Canadian provinces and territories to nominate people for permanent residency. PNPs are classified into two types i.e., basic and enhanced. Base nomination streams operate independently of the Express Entry system as it is primarily handled by the provinces. These nominations are subject to the processing criteria of the PNP stream in question.

Candidates will often have to go through a two-step process to get from a successful base nomination to permanent residency. Candidates must first establish if they match the criteria for a PNP stream, then apply and, if successful, obtain a nomination certificate. They will be able to seek for permanent resident status with the federal government once they get this certificate.

In contrast, enhanced nomination streams are linked to the Express Entry system. They enable provincial immigration officers to explore the Express Entry candidate pool for those who meet specified requirements. These individuals are then invited to seek for a provincial nomination by the provinces.

The Express Entry system oversees the applicant pool for Canada's three major federal-level economic immigration programs i.e., the Federal Skilled Worker Program, the Federal Skilled Trades Program, and the Canadian Experience Class.

Candidates that receive a provincial nomination through an improved provincial stream receive 600 additional Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) points. This almost ensures them an invitation to apply (ITA) for permanent residence in a later Express Entry draw.